Most advice for creators is a lie.
Not a malicious lie, but a lazy one. It’s a series of tactics, hacks, and formulas designed to sell you a course, not to build you a life. It's an echo chamber of people telling you to "niche down" and "post consistently" without ever asking the only question that matters: why the hell are you even doing this?
I chased the "seven-figure" dream and ended up broke, living with my parents.
Maybe your story isn't that dramatic, but I'm willing to bet you feel the same disconnect I did.
On the outside, you’re doing everything right. You're putting in the work. You're posting consistently, building in public, maybe even making some money. But on the inside, something feels... off. The creator journey feels harder than the gurus promised. You're writing thoughtful articles, but it feels like shouting into the void.
Somehow your business has become a prison, when it was supposed to be a vessel for your freedom.
The problem isn't your work ethic. The entire architecture of the creator economy is designed to turn you into a product. It's a game of chasing metrics that will never lead to the fulfillment you're actually seeking.
If you're questioning the endless cycle of tactics and looking for a deeper path, you're in the right place.
The Architecture Is Broken
I’m in the online business game for nearly a decade now.
I’ve built three e-commerce brands, a coaching business, a high-end branding studio. I've seen the inside of more business models than I can count. And I’ve worked 1-on-1 with founders, creators, and entrepreneurs who come to me with the same goal: more revenue, more clicks, more profit.
My diagnosis was always the same: lack of a coherent strategy. They were jumping from one tactic to the next, playing the lottery and hoping to win. So I helped them building a strategy. We defined their audience, clarified their message, and positioned their products. And it worked. I made my clients money.
But I eventually realized I had misdiagnosed the root cause. I was treating the symptom, not the disease.
A brilliant strategy given to a founder who is plagued by self-doubt, burnout, or a lack of purpose is like giving a world-class race car to a driver who doesn't know where they're going or why they're in the race.
The real problem is a disconnect from the one thing that can't be outsourced, hacked, or faked: your own psychology.
The reason so much creator advice fails is because the architecture is broken. It teaches you how to paint the walls and arrange the furniture before you've even laid the foundation. Here, we build differently. We build from the ground up.
Building From the Inside Out
You can't build an authentic business on top of an inauthentic self. It's a house of cards.
This insight led me to burn down my old models and develop a new one. It's the synthesis of my entire life's work, which gave birth to SERAPEX. It's a guide to making your creative work a true expression of your soul.
The framework I use is simple. It helps you to build a business that is both profitable and purpose-driven. It works from the inside-out.
Psychology (The WHY): This is the source of all authentic power and differentiation. Your purpose, your core values, your unique personality, your story, your mental and emotional framework. Everything starts here.
Strategy (The HOW): We then build a bridge from your inner world to the outer world. Your business model, your core offer, your positioning, the specific audience you are meant to serve. This is how your purpose becomes sustainable.
Brand (The WHAT): Your brand then becomes the natural, inevitable expression of this aligned foundation. Your voice, your design, your products, your marketing. It's the part the world sees, and it resonates because it's real.
When you get the psychology right, the strategy becomes obvious.
When the strategy is obvious, the brand becomes authentic.
The goal is to stop chasing success and instead build a life and a business from which happiness and fulfillment naturally arises.
Your business is not just a way to make money.
It is a laboratory for your personal growth. It is a vehicle for your self-actualization. It is the most powerful tool we have in the modern world for becoming who we are meant to be.
Most creators exist in one of two camps: they are either "spiritual" types who lack practical business sense, or they are "high-performers" who lack soul.
This model allows you to plant a foot firmly in both realms. It is an incredibly powerful position, and it is your only real defense as AI will commoditize everything except the one thing it can’t: your unique, individual self.
The Path Forward
This Substack is my journal and my library, where I explore these ideas in depth. I am not a guru with all the answers, but a guide who is obsessed with the right questions. Here are the first steps on your journey inward.
1. The Library (Free):
Dive into my foundational world-view. These hand-picked articles are the best place to understand the core principles of my philosophy.
2. The Toolkit (Free):
Get a practical tool to start your journey. My Archetype Navigator is a free guide that walks you through the first crucial steps of aligning your work with your true self.
3. The Initiation (Paid):
For those who are done with superficial advice and are ready for a guided transformation, I offer a direct path.
The Serapex Mentorship is my most profound offering. This is not a course filled with pre-recorded videos. It's an intensive, 12-week journey where we work together in 1-on-1 sessions.
We will dismantle the old programming and excavate your true calling. It’s a sacred initiation to becoming the person you were meant to be. Using structured psychological depth and dreamwork we will build the foundation for a life of purpose.
You will leave with the confidence and clarity, so your business finally becomes a creative expression of your soul.
This is the most meaningful work you can do. If you feel a deep resonance with this path and are ready for a true transformation, I invite you to learn more:
Welcome. I'm glad you're here. Let's begin.
Fire! Love it.
AND I'm also smiling because what I've written today has the same core message.
When I look around (and back in time), there seems to be an evolutionary progression in how we relate to work/business.
In the early stages, where most of us begin, our WHY is often financial security, external validation, compensating for psychological wounds...
Then as we evolve, we feel that the core is missing. Which manifests and is named as looking for meaning, fulfilment, deeper connection with your work etc. Now we want work/business to be a vehicle for self-expression and purpose. We put the core in the center and build around it.
So this transformation isn't just about WHAT we do, or leaving employment to build a business, but it's a fundamental shift of WHY and HOW we work, transforming our entire relationship with work itself.
Brilliant!
Love this approach, Phillip. Starting with the WHY, followed by the HOW, and inevitably leading to the WHAT. This path really has a great potential.